Its easy to overlook stringing up a guitar when discussing guitar maintenance, since this is about the most basic repair a guitarist can do and every guitarist should be able do it. In this online guitar building and setup course we will be taking an indepth look at not only how to properly adjust and even design certain elements of your guitar, but we will also be studying guitar physics to understand why we are taking these steps and. A professional guitar setup is a series of adjustments that are made to the guitar that allows it to play and sound optimal. The science of electric guitars and guitar electronics. How you wind the strings onto the pegs is very important, whether you. Onestop shop for stringed instrument repairs, maintenance and mods. The slightest deviation from a professional setup can have a significant impact, but luckily taking.
Oct 21, 2018 mastering your instrument video 4 changing the strings part 2 cleaning the neck. If you do any of these steps after the intonation is adjusted it will ruin all the work you did to the intonation and you will have to do it all over again. It is a fairly basic set, but basic isnt always bad. When dealing with flat top acoustic guitars with typical, round soundholes. After each use, clean a guitar by wiping the fingerboard, strings. Mar 28, 2014 john levan has written five guitar repair books published by mel bay. Led by ownerhead technician erik salomon, grli provides more than just expert guitar work. The guitar services workshop was created to service manufacturers, retailers and consumers by providing them with products, services and training in the lutherie arts.
How to set up a guitar electric guitar setup guide. In this case, changing the string height has likely disrupted the tension balance when the. The guitar player repair guide 3rd edition by dan erlewine is one book that every guitar player should have on their shelf the guitar player repair guide is a very thorough book that really explains in detail the mechanics of guitars. Having proper guitar maintenance helps you extend your guitars lifespan and allows you to achieve maximum performance from the instrument.
The guitar repair guide get answers and advice here. As an authorized service center for the martin guitar co. Newsletter sign up here to get product announcements, artist news, and more delivered straight to your inbox. Learn guitar setups, maintenance, repairs, and more online need a guitar setup. Guitar center repairs is your goto spot for expert stringed instrument repairs, upgrades and servicing. Ibanez maintenance instruction manual pdf download. General maintenance one of the best ways to maintain an instrument is to keep it clean. Setups, adjustments or routine maintenance of any kind. In this catalog alone youll find guitar tools ranging from guitarbass string cutters to 10in1 multi tools, truss rod drivers and even cradle maintenance stations. Please take a few minutes to acquaint yourself with the information in this booklet regarding materials, electronics. If you would like to take the full course you can do. Whether you want to learn basic guitar setup or advance your current repair skills, we have a variety of guitar repair, maintenance, and guitar building classes to choose from. Guitar repair long island is the areas premier destination for fretted musical instrument care and maintenance. The 12step guide to electric and acoustic guitar setup guitarplayer.
Repairing wings or any body wood is rarely necessary, especially on a thick guitar body such as a les paul standard. One of those few dvd sets is the learn and master guitar setup and maintenance set. This is a colloection of what i have learned from my grandpa, what i have figured out myself, and what i have see. With this course you will learn how to properly restring your guitar and how. Printable repair forms on the dvd printable pdf files are on the disc. This dvd should be important to players and experienced repair techs alike. Downloadalfred teach yourself guitar repair maintenance pdf. This is one lesson from a full course with gary lee entitled. Guitar setup and maintenance mar 12, 2020 if you are adjusting a fender stratstyle guitar with a floating bridge, this is the point at which you will balance the trem so that the strings will pull the bridge base off of the body. So now that you have gone out and bought your first guitar or fifth if youre like me you need to know how to properly maintain it.
Works well as a work order for customer approval, as a job ticket during the work and as a summary for billing. A setup is required to ensure proper fit and performance. You never know when your guitar is going to require a quick tuneup, but having the right guitar tools on hand will ensure youre always prepared. Guitars design, production and repair jim donahue wood tools. Page 4 tuning ibanez guitars and basses tuning standards at the factory are as follows. John also authored pgs guitar shop 101 column, hosted several pg diy videos, and is an authorized warranty technician trainer for taylor guitars. A pdf would be great, or even a scanned jpeg, gif or tiff that we can convert. Basic guitar setup 101 abridged, charles tauber, 2015 2 preface to the 2015 revision the original version of this article, basic guitar setup 101, was written in 1996 at a time when relatively little information was publicly available to the aspiring luthier, repair person or doityourselfer. Also included is a repair sheet for listing the work, with costs. Denny rauen is a nationallyacclaimed master luthier whose clientele includes many top musicians and collectors from around the world. The best investment you can make with your new instrument is not a new set of strings or fancy guitar strap, its a humidification system that will ensure that your guitar is kept at a constant 45% 50% humidity level. When you first get your guitar, dont be alarmed if the playing action is no longer set to exact factory specs.
My guitar player works as a repair guy for the marietta, ga guitar center, and he does an excellent job with setups, etc. Tools and jigs for guitar maintenance from crimson guitars in the uk. Care and maintenance of an electric guitar troubleshooting. Download complete guitar repair pdf ebooks by hideo kamimoto. Introducing a resource for guitar and bass players to get your instrument set up to optimal performance. Your guitar is designed to include many adjustment points that allow you to compensate for changes that might have taken place after final assembly but. I honestly didnt enjoy reading and sifting through all the different methods of guitar repair just to get to how to approach guitar setups.
Lacqueredover nuts will be replaced as carefully as possible to leave a clean result. Acoustic guitar repair the guitar and plucked string instruments. Acoustic guitar owners manual guild guitar company. Sometimes the problems could be due to guitar setup or even simple maintenance routines. Ask questions, show off your gear, or simply chat with fellow guitar fanatics. To learn more about johns repair and restoration workshops for players. Spend some time with denny and learn how to setup your guitar just right as well as make modifications and customizations. How to install strings without damaging your acoustic guitars bridge. Cosmeticrepair options may be available for an additional charge. After youve installed and tuned a new set, hold the strings at the first fret and hook your fingers under each string, one at a time, and tug lightly, moving your hand from the bridge to the neck. Dans books on guitar repair dan erlewines guitar shop. Taking the mystery out of guitar setup how to restring your guitar and adjust its truss rod, action and intonation like a pro.
These wings form the main body shape and may have been broken by dropping the guitar or other damaging methods. Heck, he even built the three guitars he uses with our jazz bandone of them is a hollowbody archtop. Alfred teach yourself guitar repair maintenance pdf. While there are several other common guitar repair problems, the truth is that most of these issues do not warrant an entry into the hospital requiring a luthier for fixing it up. Guitar care and maintenance tips guitar player world. This 22point setup includes personalizing all of the parameters of the instrument so it will sound and play its best for the player, cleaning and polishing the instrument, as well as a restring. Damage to finishes or cracks, splitting, or warpage of wood due to changes in temperature or humidity, exposure to or contact with sun, fire, moisture, body salts and acids of perspiration, guitar straps, guitar standshangers made from. As every player may have their own setup preferences matched to their playing style, this will ensure that your guitar works best for you. We offer top shelf handcut bone nuts and saddles, setups, fret work, electronic repair and modifications, pickup and hardware upgrades, hotrodding and professional advice. If you are unable to create one of these document formats and would be willing to send in your hard copy to the address above, wed be happy to scan it. A master guitar tech at world famous gruhn guitars greg began work at gruhn guitars in 2005.
Setup and adjustment made easy to adjust the truss. How to set up a fender stratocaster premier guitar. It covers setup and routine maintenance on both electric and acoustic type guitars. These 12 steps are considered absolutely essential in a basic setup. In the guitar setup course, the third dvd is devoted to acoustic guitar setup. See more ideas about guitar, guitar diy and guitar building. The 12step guide to electric and acoustic guitar setup. After playing, wipe down your instrument to remove.
Its not a repair you can or should do yourselfa neck reset is a specialized procedure that should only be performed by qualified service personnel. Acoustics are very, very different than electric guitars, when you get right down into the mechanics of them, and as such they truly do need a section of their own in any guitar setup guide. Sf guitarworks guitar repairmaintenancemodifications. Contact your local guitar center store for pricing and more information about these repair and maintenance services. To avoid damaging the finish, titebond is often used to repair small areas of loose.
For novices and beginners who dont know how to setup guitars, the book is organized poorly again, for the novice of beginner thats just trying to get their guitar setup properly. Located inside every guitar center store, our staff of experienced, certified technicians. The 3rd edition of the worlds favorite guitar repair book is now more complete and easier to. It is natural for a guitars setup to change due to the factors just listed. Gigging musicians need to maintain their tool of trade. The instructions are clear and well illustrated and just a few setups that you perform to keep your sound in tip top order will more than save you the cost of the dvd set if you had to take your guitar to a music store and have their technician do the setup for you.
Mar 05, 2020 everyone is different and will want the guitar to play for their technique. Hes done two fretjobs for me, and is currently replacing the bridge saddle on my 6 string acoustic bass guitar. John also authored pgs guitar shop 101 column, hosted several pg diy videos, and is an authorized. Much like a cars seasonal tuneup, a setup should be performed to address the changes a guitar undergoes over time, with adjustments made to the instrument in order to match your preference of strings. The learn and master guitar setup and maintenance dvd course is the ultimate companion for every guitar player who wants to ensure their instrument has better playability and prolonged lifespan. Instrument repairs, maintenance and modifications guitar. Congratulations on the purchase of your new gibson electric guitar the worlds most famous electric guitar from the leader of fretted instruments. This will include the basics, such as setting the action, intonation and neck relief. Please note that the majority of our tools are handmade so the tool you receive may not match the picture shown exactly but every tool is of an equally high standard.
Basically, if you arent taking care of it, its going to sound horrible and eventually break in some way. Instrument repairs, maintenance and modifications guitar center. If you have a guitar with a floyd rose floating tremolo that needs setting up or you have worn out frets and need a fret dressing. Despite the books title, i expected the pages to contain far too many stories with a look at how cool i am hanging with rock stars message and. Learn guitar setup in our guitar setup and maintenance class. Dec 28, 2019 to whom a great guitar is given, much is asked. In this regard, the truss rod is at the heart of the setup. A pack of select strings is included with the setup. These create a sound that is both traditional and progressive. A tech to the stars tells how to maintain your axe like a pro by doug redler and dave rubin.
A setup is actually a series of procedures, many of which fall under the categories of basic maintenance and fine adjustment. This is considered basic maintenance that could include adjustments to the neck, string height, tuning stability, hardware adjustments and more. The hub is your source for guitar repair and maintenance, music knowhow, news, gear, and everything in between. It provides a place to record all of the needed information about the. We specialize in vintage guitar restoration, repair and repair training. Enter your email below to sign up for our newsletter and download our complimentary quick setup guide for electric guitar and bass. Guitar maintenance is crucial to extracting the maximum enjoyment from your instrument.
Take this workshop before you shop for your next guitar, and you will buy with confidence. This class will teach you how to setup any stringed instrument for optimal tone and playability. Dan erlewines book for setups why all the love and. This guide will use photographs, diagrams and sketches made by the author and some provided by various manufacturers to teach how to clean, condition, adjust the action and properly intonate your acoustic guitar, as well as. See all 4 formats and editions hide other formats and editions. Mel bay this guide will use photographs, diagrams and sketches made by the author and some provided by various manufacturers to teach how to clean, condition, adjust the action and properly intonate your acoustic guitar, as well as. Properly humidifying your guitar is easy to do and incredibly important, especially for acoustic guitars. In this musthave instructional dvd, denny personally teaches.
Guitar setup before intonation adjustment this section will deal with the setup of the guitar you will need to do before you adjust the intonation. When doing wiring work on the tone and volume control section in the guitar, please make sure that the guitar cable is not connected to the. A novice player will save bundles, learning to do their own guitar maintenance, while the seasoned guitarist will prevent costly mistakes learning from a tech with yearsworth of experience. Cleaning cleaning your guitar regularly is one of the best ways to. The student support forum is a vibrant learning community with over 15,000 active users, all helping each other along as they progress through the course. There is nothing more important than basic maintenance, and in this. He came to nashville from new york with a lengthy background in repair and setup of a broad range of electric and acoustic instruments. How to do a full guitar set up in 15 minutes guitar. John levan has written five guitar repair books published by mel bay. If you do not properly glue in the wings you will need to use extra caution as to not break the bond. Setupcaremaintenance the heart of the ubass tone lies in its polyurethane strings in conjunction with its size 21 scale length and active pickup system. Johns trade secrets on handcarving bone nuts and bridge saddles, wiring and fretwork.